Over the last month or so as I’ve re-acclimated to China after a lot of traveling the months prior, I’ve started thinking about how much I have changed since I came here nearly five years ago. It’s getting harder to remember my five years ago self but every once in a while I do something and I think – “Wow, that is a change in my behavior.”
I started jotting down thoughts in random places and slowly realized that I have enough for a list. If there are any other China expats who can chime in, I’d love to hear when you realized that you’ve “gone local.”
So, I knew that I’d gone local when…
1) I could use a squat toilet in heels
2) I asked for warm water to drink at a restaurant
3) After a long day traveling when I looked at the room service menu I ordered a bowl of beef noodles
4) I told someone off in the grocery store (See this story for details)
5) I checked “going home” on my entry paperwork at the airport instead of “employment” for the reason I was entering the country – this actually caused some confusion with the customs officer who looked at me and asked, “Are you really going home?”
6) I stopped expecting any restaurants to have napkins or bathrooms to have toilet paper
7) I can give my Chinese friends directions to my favorite restaurants
8) My Notre Dame friends invited me to the Chinese (Mandarin speaking) alumni meeting
Eight is a good (lucky) number in Chinese, so I’ll stop my list there which may be another signal that I’ve gone local.
Any more that you can think of?
中国 Jumble 